


another year has gone by.

by pyroallerdyce



Series: a dyad in the force (aka all my ben/rey fics) [180]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers, Alternate Universe - No Powers, December writing challenge, F/M, First Meetings, Friendship, Getting to Know Each Other, Inspired by Music, Kissing, New Year's Eve, New York City, Pre-Relationship, Prompt Fic, Prompt Fill, Relationship(s), Tumblr Prompt, Wordcount: 1.000-3.000
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:55:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28388136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pyroallerdyce/pseuds/pyroallerdyce
Summary: When she got to New York, she found the cheapest hotel she could, spent the next few days walking around Central Park and going to the Museum of Modern Art, and then headed to Times Square when it was New Year’s Eve.  The crowds started gathering during the day, so she did the same.  As she stood there and looked around at the buildings and neon signs that surrounded her, she felt like she was part of a communal experience.But there was a group of people who quite clearly were close friends right next to her, and it was making her feel incredibly alone too.or:  Rey lives in London and spontaneously goes to New York City for New Year's Eve in Times Square.  She ends up standing near a group of people that seem to be having a good time, and one of those people is a man named Ben.
Relationships: Minor or Background Relationship(s), Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Series: a dyad in the force (aka all my ben/rey fics) [180]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1601755
Comments: 5
Kudos: 31
Collections: December Writing Challenge - 2020





	another year has gone by.

**Author's Note:**

> December writing challenge day 28. thank god this is almost over. this month has been a struggle.
> 
> and as always, if you like what you read and you want to see more, please let me know via a comment or kudos or bookmark so that i know I'm not writing into a void. enjoy!
> 
> December 28 Prompt: “You’re going to New York for New Year’s? Are you nuts?” (ravenclawnerd on Tumblr)  
> Title Song: Another Year Has Gone By by Céline Dion

Rey had always wanted to experience New Year’s Eve in Times Square. Trouble was, she didn’t live in New York City. She lived in London, therefore making going to New York City a bit more difficult than it would have been had she have lived in the United States. So it was a dream that was likely going to always go unfulfilled. It was kind of pointless to get on a plane just to stand outside with thousands of people to watch something live in person that she could watch on YouTube the next morning.

And then the week of Christmas happened.

Her boyfriend kicked her out on Monday so that the woman he’d been cheating on Rey with could move in. Her boss decided that he didn’t like her production at work, gave her a couple of hours to fix a problem that would have taken at least a month to properly solve, and then fired her on Wednesday when she couldn’t complete that task. Thursday’s Christmas Eve had been spent explaining the events of the week to her clearly disappointed parents, and then Friday was Christmas, where she had to explain what had happened yet again to her extended family.

That week fucking sucked.

She got all of her stuff out of her old apartment on Saturday, moved it into her parents’ basement and started to unpack on Sunday, and found herself staring at a calendar on Monday. Before she even realized it, she was filling a suitcase full of clothes and checking to make sure that she had her passport. A brief goodbye to her once-again disappointed parents later, Rey caught a taxi to Heathrow and got herself on the next available flight to New York City. 

She’d explore the city for a few days, spend New Year’s Eve in Times Square, and then go back to London. It’d be exactly what she needed. 

When she got to New York, she found the cheapest hotel she could, spent the next few days walking around Central Park and going to the Museum of Modern Art, and then headed to Times Square when it was New Year’s Eve. The crowds started gathering during the day, so she did the same. As she stood there and looked around at the buildings and neon signs that surrounded her, she felt like she was part of a communal experience.

But there was a group of people who quite clearly were close friends right next to her, and it was making her feel incredibly alone too.

One of them disappeared after a while and eventually came back with a bunch of cups that Rey assumed was full of coffee. She didn’t think much about it until the man who had gone to get the coffee came to stand next to her and held out a cup. 

“You look like you’re here alone and that you’re cold,” the man said. “So I got you some hot chocolate.”

Rey turned to look at him and was struck by a pair of beautiful eyes and a face just silly enough to be completely gorgeous. “Thank you,” she murmured, taking the cup from him. “That’s very considerate of you.”

“I’m Ben,” he said. “And you are quite clearly not a native New Yorker.”

Rey laughed and took a small sip of the hot chocolate to see how hot it was. “Rey. And no, I’m not,” she confirmed. “I’m only here for the holiday.”

“You’re only here for the holiday?” Ben asked.

Rey nodded. “I came here to experience Times Square on New Year’s Eve and then I’m going home. It was kind of a spontaneous decision.”

“Awesome,” Ben said, smiling at her. “Spontaneous decisions are sometimes the best ones.”

“Hey, Ben, how much do I owe you for the hot chocolate?” one of the other men asked, and Ben shook his head. 

“Nothing, Poe.”

“That’s fucking bullshit,” Poe said firmly. “Let me pay you back.”

“Yeah, Ben,” one of the women said. “Let us pay you back for it.”

“It is a New Year’s Eve gift,” Ben said seriously. “I am not letting anyone pay for them, Rose.”

“You know that he’s not going to change his mind, so just give up,” the other man said. “Ben Solo is stubborn as hell.”

“I know, Finn, but he’s also completely broke and shouldn’t be buying all of us hot chocolate from Rebellion because you know they overcharge the fuck out of things.”

“Relax, Zorii,” Ben said. “I can afford to buy everyone hot chocolate.”

“Whatever,” Poe said. “He’s stubborn as fuck. We’re not going to win this argument.”

His friends all turned back to each other, and Ben turned his attention to Rey. She took a long sip of her hot chocolate before speaking to him. “I can pay you back for this.”

“Not necessary,” Ben said.

“Are you sure?” Rey asked. “I don’t have much American money on me, but I have enough to pay for some hot chocolate, I think.”

“Rey, I don’t need any money,” Ben said seriously. “Just enjoy the hot chocolate and soak in the atmosphere. Times Square on New Year’s Eve is unique.”

Rey nodded and kept talking to Ben about New York City, and before she knew it, she had been swept into a discussion with his friends as well. They talked about anything and everything they could think of as the day passed into night. They got into the spirit more and more as the night went on, dancing to the music they could hear being performed near them and getting ready for the countdown to midnight. 

And then Zorii spoke up. 

“You know, I have Poe to kiss at midnight,” she started. “And you have Finn, Rose. But yet again, we are on New Year’s Eve, and Ben has no one to kiss.”

“That is an excellent point,” Rose said, turning to look at Ben. “So, what do we do about Ben?”

“Well,” Poe said after a moment. “Rey, are you single?”

Zorii slapped at his shoulder. “That is not the way to ask that.”

“How the fuck am I supposed to ask that then?”

“Ignore the two of them and answer the question, please,” Rose said, and everyone’s attention turned to Rey. 

“Definitely single,” Rey responded. “My boyfriend kicked me out a little over a week ago.”

“Ouch,” Finn said, wincing. 

“All the more reason that you should kiss Ben at midnight then,” Zorii said, and Poe laughed.

“Oh, that’s a great idea. A brilliant idea, actually.”

“I can’t believe I didn’t think of that,” Finn said, shaking his head. “But that’s what has to happen now. Ben and Rey will kiss each other at midnight.”

“I don’t know about that,” Ben started, but then the crowd around them let out an enormous cheer and he looked up to see that the countdown had started. 

“Ben,” Rey said, loud enough to be heard over to the crowd. “It’s okay.”

“I don’t think it’s right to invade your personal space like that.”

“You wouldn’t be invading it if I’ve given you permission to be there,” Rey found herself saying. “And I’m giving you permission to be there.”

Ben took a deep breath as the countdown hit five, and he brought his hands up to caress the side of Rey’s face. “You’re sure?”

Rey knew that kissing a stranger at midnight was probably not the best of ideas. But Ben had been incredibly nice to her all afternoon, he was unbelievably sexy, and she knew that the kiss was the perfect way to cap off her Times Square experience. “I’m sure.”

The crowd around them’s voices began to rise in volume as they shouted out four, and Ben traced Rey’s cheekbone with his thumb as they continued to yell.

“Three!”

“Two!”

“One!”

“Happy New Year!”

Rey smiled and Ben pulled her into a kiss. What was supposed to be a chaste kiss quickly became more when Ben realized that kissing Rey was the most incredible feeling he’d ever had in his life. Rey was thinking the same thing and welcomed it when Ben deepened the kiss. When they finally broke apart, everyone was still partying around them, including Ben’s friends. They just stared at each other for a few moments, unable to put into words what they had just felt.

Eventually, Ben pulled his hands away from her face and slid his arms around her waist, pulling Rey to him. “There’s an all-night coffee shop not too far from here that I know will have absolutely no business because of what’s going on out here. Wanna go get to know each other better?”

Rey smiled and nodded. “Yeah, that sounds great.”

Ben’s friends teased him about how they knew that he and Rey really weren’t going to a coffee shop, but Ben just took Rey by the hand and led her through the crowd until they were on a sidewalk and headed away from the people. “I am so sorry for my friends being obnoxious assholes,” he said. “You deserved to be treated better than that.”

“I am being treated better than that,” Rey said, squeezing Ben’s hand. “Because you are taking me to a coffee shop instead of your place.”

“Yeah,” Ben said, smiling at her. “I am.”

They reached Rebellion and Rey discovered that Ben had been right. There was no one else in the shop. They ordered coffee and each got a sandwich as well since they had barely eaten all day, then settled down in a couple of cozy chairs in the back and began to talk.

They didn’t leave until it was nearly ten o’clock in the morning.

Before they parted ways, they made sure to exchange their numbers and Ben told her that she was welcome back to his city any time. He kissed her deeply one last time before they went their separate ways, and all Rey could think about on the way back to her hotel was how incredible Ben was. 

Ben, who liked the same books she did.

Ben, who was currently unemployed just like Rey because of a motherfucking boss who set them up to fail.

Ben, who Rey could already tell was the most amazing man she’d ever met.

She got back to her hotel room and sat down on the bed, Ben on her mind as she searched through her phone to find flight back to London the next day. She contemplated how the time would pass now that she knew what it was like to be this way. Going back to London was going to make her absolutely miserable.

So, she found herself making another spontaneous decision. 

She took a deep breath and laid back onto the bed with a smile on her face. 

Moving to New York City was just the thing she needed.

**one year later……..**

Rey was starting to become concerned because Ben still hadn’t shown up for the New Year’s Eve celebrations in Times Square, but Poe kept telling her that he was on his way. How his way could take nearly two hours, Rey didn’t know. She just wanted him to be there right now.

And then he was, carrying coffee cups for everyone just like the year before. Rey smiled as he handed them out, and when he walked over to her, he held out one of them. “I got you some hot chocolate, baby.”

Rey took the cup. “Just like last year.”

Ben grinned. “Exactly.”

Rey took a long sip of the hot chocolate. “Do you know what my mother said to me last year when I told her I was coming here for this?”

“What?” Ben asked.

“She said, ‘You’re going to New York for New Year’s? Are you nuts?’ and thinking about it just makes me laugh,” Rey said, doing just that. “We had that conversation about spontaneous decisions being the best ones, and the spontaneous decision to come here is probably the best decision of my life.”

Ben pulled Rey to him and gave her a quick kiss. “Well, I am very glad for that decision, as I am for the one where you moved to New York.”

Rey laughed. “My parents hated that one.”

“Yeah, they hate me too,” Ben said, and Rey turned to him.

“They just don’t know you well enough yet. They will get to know you and then things will be fine.”

“I’m glad you’re so sure of that.”

“I’ve seen it, you haven’t,” Rey pointed out.

Ben stepped closer to her, wrapping his arms around Rey and smiling when she burrowed herself into his embrace. “Well, whether they like me or not is not going to change the fact that I love you.”

“It’s not going to change the fact that I love you too,” Rey said, smiling when Ben kissed her.

They stayed close to each other all night, laughed at all of Poe’s stupid jokes, and then when midnight approached, Ben couldn’t help himself and started kissing her before the countdown finished. When they finally broke apart, Rey made another spontaneous decision that she knew was the right one. 

“Ben?”

“What, baby?”

“Once City Hall is open again, do you want to go there?”

Ben gave her a confused look. “What’s at City Hall?”

Rey grinned at him. “A place to get married.”

Ben stared at her for a moment before laughing. “I’m supposed to be the one who asks.”

“Nah,” Rey said, shaking her head. “You can get the ring though.”

Ben grinned and pulled her into another kiss. “Yes,” he murmured against her lips. “I’d love to go to City Hall with you.”

“Then let’s go Thursday morning.”

“That sounds amazing.”

Ben kissed her again and Rey knew that all was right in her world.

Spontaneous decisions were the best.


End file.
